Project planning, costing, drawing and design
Project planning, costing, drawing and design
This domain tests the planning chain from brief to working drawing, cutting list and cost, including scale and design constraints.
Core rules
- Start with a brief: purpose, user, size, material, finish, budget and deadline. List constraints and criteria.
- Design: sketch alternatives, choose one, then produce a working drawing with orthographic views (front, plan, end) and a pictorial view for assembly.
- Use a scale (1:1, 1:5, 1:10) and dimension consistently in mm. Include a title block, material notes and joint details.
- Cutting list: part name, quantity, finished size, material, grain direction, notes.
- Cost: material + fasteners + adhesive + finish + labour + overhead + wastage allowance. Wastage is often 10% for timber.
Worked example
A small stool uses 2.4 m of 44 × 44 pine at 60 per metre, a 1.2 × 0.6 m board at 250 per m², and 40 for glue and finish. Timber = 2.4 × 60 = 144. Board area = 0.72 m²; cost = 0.72 × 250 = 180. Add 10% wastage: (144 + 180) × 0.10 = 32.4. Total = 144 + 180 + 40 + 32.4 = 396.4. Reasoning: wastage applies to bought material, not labour; show each line so errors are visible.
Traps
Forgetting wastage or finish; costing nominal rather than finished sizes; drawing without dimensions; mixing scales; designing joints that cannot be assembled; omitting labour.